Who was Tutankhamun? - BBC Bitesize

How did Tutankhamun become Pharaoh?

A photo of the burial mask of Tutankhamun — Image caption,
The burial mask of Tutankhamun, one of the Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt.

Pharaohs were the kings of Ancient Egypt.

They ruled over the land, collected taxes from the people, enforced the law and led the Egyptian army against invaders.

Tutankhamun, also known as King Tut or The Boy King, became pharaoh when he was around 9 years old and was the last of his dynasty of pharaohs.

He ruled for a short time, after the death of his father Akhenaten.

King Akhenaten was not very popular because he outlawed all gods apart from Aten.

After King Akhenaten’s death, the people destroyed many of his statues and monuments because they were unhappy with how he had ruled.

Important words

Important words on Tutankhamun.

Keyword	Definition
Dynasty	A family line of rulers.
Funerary bed or couch	Is a bed that would carry the deceased into the afterlife.
Outlawed	Made illegal or banned.
Pharaoh	A king or queen who ruled over the land, collected taxes, enforced the law and led the army.
Significance	A past event or person who is important.

Timeline: Ancient Egypt

Skip image gallery

Image caption,
Click the arrows learn more about the timeline of Ancient Egypt!
Image caption,
Around 3200BC
King Narmer conquers and rules over Upper and Lower Egypt, becoming the first Egyptian Pharaoh.
Image caption,
2700BC
Mummification becomes popular. Egyptians might have been preserving bodies earlier, but now they're getting good at it! They removed the organs, dried the body using salt, and wrapped them up in oil-soaked linen fabric.
Image caption,
2600-2500BC
The Great Pyramids of Giza were built. It's a marvel of engineering, but it took such a long time!
Image caption,
1336BC
Reign of Tutankhamun begins. One of ancient Egypt's most famous kings. He became king at only 9 years old. We learned a lot about him thanks to his tomb being so well-preserved.
Image caption,
332BC
Egypt is conquered by King Alexander of Macedon (also called Alexander the Great). There wasn't a battle - the Egyptians welcomed him in to help fight against other enemies.
Image caption,
51-30BC
Queen Cleopatra VII is the last independent ruler of Egypt, speaking both Greek and Egyptian. Her reign comes to an end as the Romans conquer, which is the end of Ancient Egypt.
Image caption,
What was happening elsewhere?
Many other interesting periods of history happened during Ancient Egypt, find out more in our other sections on Bitesize.

Watch: Who was Tutankhamun?

Watch the video to learn about King Tutankhamun.

To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser.

This video can not be played

Learn about the famous Egyptian Pharaoh Tutankhamun.

What do we know about Tutankhamun?

A photo of a scene from Tutanhamun's life from his throne. — Image caption,
Tutankhamun married his half-sister Ankhesenamun, this artwork is from the seat of Tutankhamun's throne.

Tutankhamun inherited the throne around age 9 and became Pharaoh in around 1332 BC.

Because he was so young, he had powerful advisers around him to help him rule Egypt.

They included General Horemheb and Grand Vizier Ay.

Tutankhamun reversed many decisions made by his father, King Akhenaten.

King Akhenaten had outlawed (made illegal or banned) the traditional gods of Ancient Egypt.

Tutankhamun let people worship the old gods again and made sure the damaged temples were repaired.

A photo of the Valley of the Kinds in Egypt. — Image caption,
The Valley of the Kings was where Ancient Egypts Pharaohs and most powerful nobles were buried.

He moved the Egyptian capital back to Thebes.

Tutankhamun reigned for roughly 10 years.

He died around the age of 18, possibly from malaria or a broken leg from a chariot accident.

He was buried in a tomb in the Valley of the Kings, the burial ground for the Pharaohs and most important nobles.

Tutankhamun married his half-sister but their children did not survive.

He was succeeded by his vizier (the highest official after the Pharaoh), Ay.

Watch: Tutankhamun's tomb

Watch the video to learn more about Tutankhamun's tomb.

To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser.

This video can not be played

Dan Cruikshank tells the story of Howard Carter's discovery of Tutankhamun's tomb.

Why is Tutankhamun’s tomb so famous?

A photo of Howard Carter investigating Tutankhamun's sarcophagus. — Image caption,
Howard Carter and an aide investigating Tutankhamun's scarphogus (coffin) in 1922.

Tutankhamun's tomb was hidden for many centuries.

It was covered in debris from other tombs and then hidden by workers' houses.

In 1907 it was declared that there was nothing left to find at the Valley of the Kings but in 1922 the Egyptologist (someone who studies Egypt) Howard Carter discovered the tomb.

On the 17th February, 1923, the seal to the tomb was broken and a living human stepped inside for the first time in 3,200 years.

What was inside Tutankhamun's tomb?

The tomb contained 5,398 items, including:

Tutankhamun’s famous golden death mask
a solid gold coffin
thrones
trumpets
fresh linen
a chariot
a dagger made from meteorite iron.

A photo of Tutankhamun's tomb. — Image caption,
Tutankhamun's tomb, which was discovered by Howard Carter in 1922.

It took Howard Carter 10 years to catalogue the finds from the tomb.

Parts of Tutankhamun’s chest with a beaded collar were stolen after the discovery, along with his skull cap!

What did Tutankhamun look like?

A photo of a wooden statue of the pharaoh Tutankhamun. — Image caption,
This wooden statue, found in his tomb, showed what Tutankhamun may have looked like as a young boy.

We know what Tutankhamun looked like because scientists have done experiments on his skull, bones and DNA.

We know that Tutankhamun was slim, 5’6” tall with rounded hips, a narrow waist and large front teeth.

Tutankhamun's tomb also had statues and artwork that showed what he may have looked like.

Slideshow: Famous Pharoahs

Skip image gallery

Image caption,
Hatshepsut (1478 - 1458BC)
Hatshepsut was the longest reigning female pharaoh of Ancient Egypt. She ruled for about 21 years. She is considered one of the most successful pharaohs. She became pharaoh after her husband died, because her stepson was too young to rule. She commissioned hundreds of grand buildings and established important trade routes.
Image caption,
Amenhotep III (1391 BC - 1353BC)
Amenhotep III was a powerful pharaoh who ruled Egypt for almost 40 years. Amenhotep III built many of Ancient Egypt's famous monuments, including the Luxor Temple and the Colossi of Memnon.
Image caption,
Ramesses II (1279 - 1213BC)
Ramesses II was one of the most powerful pharaohs. He ruled for about 66 years, which is one of the longest reigns in Egyptian history. He led many military expeditions, founded cities and had huge statues of himself built.
Image caption,
Cleopatra VII (51 - 30BC)
Cleopatra VII was Ancient Egypt's last pharaoh. After her reign, Egypt became a part of the Roman Empire and this was the end of the Ancient Egyptian civilisation.

Think like a historian

A thought bubble saying 'Thinking points'.

Have a look at the thinking point below and think about your answer to the question. You could even write it down on a piece of paper or discuss it with somebody else if you want to.